


Praxis Makes Perfect

by GoodyearTheShippyCat



Category: Starfighter (Comic), Starfighter Eclipse
Genre: Alternate Canon, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Awkward Flirting, Awkwardness, Barebacking, Enthusiastic Consent, First Time, Hand Jobs, Helios' POV, M/M, POV First Person, Praxis Feels, Using Appropriate Amounts of Lube
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-04
Updated: 2017-11-03
Packaged: 2019-01-29 05:00:05
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,937
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12623784
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GoodyearTheShippyCat/pseuds/GoodyearTheShippyCat
Summary: What if Praxis had a route in Starfighter: Eclipse, where Helios could seduce him as they help Selene to save the ship? An exploration of how that storyline might have unfolded.





	1. Day 1

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is dedicated to [IronPhoenixAshe](http://archiveofourown.org/users/IronPhoenixAshe/) and [on_the_wing](http://archiveofourown.org/users/on_the_wing), because their discussion of a possible Praxis romance route (and help collecting all his canon appearances in the game) was what inspired it. 
> 
> It’s basically my love letter to _Starfighter: Eclipse_ and the two dorkiest space gays. Some dialogue is directly quoted, and the events in the fic are liberally inspired by the other routes in the game. It’s all tied together with my own thoughts on how these two might play off each other.

Walking into the briefing hall for the first time was exciting. Not only were we going to be learning the details of our first actual mission— _Well, Selene and I’s first mission. The rest of the crew is more experienced,_ I thought to myself—we had a chance to meet a bunch of the other fighters and navigators. Compatibility training had been time consuming, so I’d barely spent time with anyone besides my navigator the past two weeks, save for mandatory group training with the other fighters. I didn’t think I’d even spoken to any other navigators except for Abel, when I first boarded the Kepler and he was out greeting new members of the ship’s complement. People were milling about the room, the background noise a cacophony of excited conversation. Selene went off to grab a seat, but I decided to see if there was anyone else to socialize with. _I mean, Selene’s great, but I’d like to meet at least a few other people_. I’d been feeling on the edge of cabin fever the past few days, and wanted to make some more friends.  

My eyes drifted over the room, briefly resting on many of the attractive uniformed guys. _This ship certainly has its share of eye candy_. Close to me, I spotted a familiar face—Cain, the standoffish fighter who was partnered with Abel. Our first meeting hadn’t been great, as I’m pretty sure he thought I was trying to hit on his navigator, who I’d since gathered he was extremely possessive of. But he was standing only with another fighter at the moment, a cute smaller guy whose task name I was pretty certain was ‘Deimos’.

I figured there was no better time than the present to try smoothing over that first encounter, so I wandered over to say hello. “Hey there!”

Not two minutes later—having been unceremoniously run off without even a chance to properly introduce myself to Deimos—I realized there was no way to easily make good with Cain. _Wow, what is his problem?_ I thought, looking around, _Well fuck that guy, there are plenty of other people I can talk to_.

Making my way across the room, I passed by two unfriendly looking navigators. They were talking with each other while simultaneously looking down on and ignoring the rest of the soldiers in the room. I kept going and caught sight of Athos, who had been really welcoming to me since I arrived. We'd sat together in the mess hall a few times when Selene was off doing important navigator stuff, or whatever he was getting up to when we weren’t compatibility training.

He was seated next to a really tall fighter. Task name ‘Praxis’, I remembered, having heard Encke addressing him in PT earlier that week. He was easy to spot, between his height, good looks that were classically handsome with a colonial twist, and of course, the eye patch. Which—as far as I was concerned—just made his look a little more rugged than your standard pretty boy, and suited him well. I idly wondered how he got injured in the first place, and whether having only one good eye made it harder to handle the weapons station in a Starfighter.

 _I wonder what Praxis’ deal is?_ Despite being so recognizable, I’d hardly seen him around the ship—maybe he wasn’t very sociable. At the moment, he didn't seem to be paying any attention to chatty-as-ever Athos, who was gesturing wildly; no doubt in the middle of some ridiculous story. _Who’s he looking at?_ I followed the direction of his gaze and saw Abel sitting with another navigator, whose curly shock of white blond hair I’d definitely seen before. I was pretty sure he was Praxis’ navigator, and Selene had mentioned him.... _Ethos! That’s his name, I think._

Athos happened to look in my direction, caught sight of me, and waved me over enthusiastically.  

“Helios, how’s it going? You excited to hear about this mission, or what?” he said, obviously happy to have a more attentive audience again. I opened my mouth to reply, but he just kept rolling along. “Have a you been introduced to Praxis?” he gestured to the taller man, whose attention was still across the room. “Yo, Praxis, this is that new fighter I mentioned, Helios!”

The one-eyed fighter didn't turn his head. He was obviously lost in thought, and we were on his blind side, so he wouldn't even have seen Athos’ excited hand movements. I guessed that he’d been tuning the talkative fighter out, and an unfamiliar voice might register better.

“Hey there, tall dark and handsome,” I spoke loud enough to be heard over the din of the large hall, “What’s on your mind that’s got you so distracted?” It worked like a charm; he turned to face us, single brown eye quickly looking me over.

He seemed a little flustered when he replied, “Sorry, umm, I didn’t catch what you guys were saying. Must’ve been off in my own world...”

Athos jumped in. “ _As_ I was saying,” he drawled, “Helios is part of the fresh meat we picked up on the station.” Praxis’ brows drew together at that, though his expression was otherwise unreadable. “But he seems to pretty cool to me, and I think you two might get along!”

“Hi Praxis,” I said before Athos could get another word in, “Nice to meet you.” I beamed my most charming smile at him.

“Oh– uh, nice to meet you, too, Helios.” He extended a hand, and I shook it. His palm was warm in mine, and his grip firm. He held on a beat too long, and didn’t say anything more, so an awkward silence stretched between us.

“So have you ever been on a mission quite like this one?” I babbled, Athos not being of any help for once.

Praxis shook his head side to side and opened his mouth to elaborate, when the Head Navigator announced that the briefing would begin in 5 minutes, asking for everyone to find their seats.

“Sit with us, Helios!” Athos slid one chair over and patted the one he’d just vacated, right next to Praxis.

I looked across the room at where Selene was sitting, arm draped over the empty chair beside him, turned around in his seat to chat with a navigator I didn’t recognize in the row behind. “Ah, I would, but I already promised to sit with Selene. Uh, my navigator,” I added for Praxis’ benefit. He nodded. “Next time, though! I’d definitely like to get to know you both better!” I waved goodbye and headed in the direction of my waiting seat.

Of course, getting there meant passing by where Ethos was sitting with Abel, who called out to me. “Helios! Over here!” It would have been rude to ignore Abel waving me down, so I paused to say hello and be properly introduced to Praxis’ navigator, which of course is when Cain decided to show up again. _Ugh_.

When I finally made it to sit next to Selene, he smirked, asking, “Cain run you off?”

We chatted briefly about our shipmates before the CO took the podium. _Should probably pay close attention to this_ , I thought to myself, _I wouldn’t want to mess up on our first actual mission!_

 

***

 

 _I can’t believe we’re actually_ on _an alien ship right now_. Stepping onto the Derelict was probably the most surreal experience of my life thus far. More than my first time in a shuttle, more than anything that had ever happened in the dusty colonies, more even than my first time in the cockpit of the _Edifice_. It was overwhelming, and I instantly felt a little disoriented, even knowing that Selene was standing right there beside me. _There’s no reason to worry_ , I chastised myself over the anxiety bubbling in my stomach.

It was a bit of a relief when a deep, newly familiar voice sounded over the comms in my helmet, stepping up to take charge of the situation. “The maintenance team has just breached the airlock–” Praxis was standing at the head of our assembled away team, trying to get us organized by the locations for our mission objectives. Sadly, it didn’t last long.

One of the catty navigators I’d seen in the briefing hall sniped at him and took over, ordering people around, especially Deimos. _Must be his navigator, poor guy_ , I thought sympathetically.

Watching the drama unfold as Abel tried to shut down the other navigator—Phobos, I learned—in a slightly exasperated tone, I sidled up next to Praxis, who was now hanging back to one side of the group. He turned his upper body so he could see me from the confines of the helmet. I gave him a knowing look, flicking my eyes to Phobos and rolling them a little. That got a smirk, but it was time to part ways, so there wasn’t time for any more conversation. I joined up with Selene again as we made our way to the bridge, following Cain and Abel to go set up a dataspike and check out whatever there was to see.


	2. Day 2

My head was spinning a bit, and I was pretty sure it wasn’t just the after effects of the aural feedback on the derelict ship. Getting my bandages off that morning had boosted my mood, but after visiting the bridge my thoughts were running wild. I’d gone to find out what was happening for poor Abel, who was still stuck in med bay, having been the most affected by the surge on the alien craft. He was obviously frustrated at not being allowed to go work with his fellow navigators on what we’d brought back. Selene had seemed a bit stressed, and all that alien script scrolling over the computer screens had me kind of creeped out. I couldn’t seem to shake the feeling that something bad was going on. I wished, not for the first time, that Valentina were here with me. She always knew what to do when I was feeling lost, adrift. _Fuck, don’t think about that now_.

I decided to take the scenic route and visit the observation deck before heading back to tell Abel about what was going on with the data that had been gathered on our mission. Staring out at the vast, starry void was always surprisingly calming, and I didn’t have any duties for the moment. Entering the deck from the door at one side, I was a little disappointed to hear voices nearby. _It sure is difficult to find somewhere to be alone with your thoughts in this place_ , I mused. Seeing who it was brought my spirits up a little, though.

Praxis and Ethos were hanging out, lounging against one of the rails. It sounded like they were discussing the maintenance crew member who had been injured on the Derelict and who was still in med bay when I’d been down there—Morena, the Medical Officer had said her name was.

“Really, I’m sure she’ll be fine,” Praxis said in a reassuring voice, obviously trying to put a good face on things for his navigator, who seemed a little agitated from what I could see.

“But Praxis, didn’t you see– oh, hi Helios!” Ethos smiled when he caught sight of me approaching.

“Hey, I’m sorry, am I interrupting?” I asked, not wanting to intrude on a private conversation.

The three of us compared notes on our mission experiences from the previous day. It was nice to know I wasn’t the only person feeling uneasy about the whole situation. Mentioning that I had been planning to go down to catch Abel up on everything piqued both their attention, though.

“Oh thank goodness he’s up at least!” Ethos said happily after hearing me confirm that Abel was antsy to be discharged once a few more tests had been done.

“He seems like he’s a lot better. We talked for a little bit… until Cain showed up.”

“Ugh…” Praxis said, not quite under his breath.

“Ha ha! Praxis and Cain can’t really seem to get along!” Ethos laughed, though it rang a bit hollow.

“Can Cain get along with anyone?” I asked, sarcasm obvious in my voice.

“No,” Praxis responded, bluntly. “Do you think he’s still up there?” It was obvious that the older fighter had no interest in dealing with Cain if he didn’t have to.

“Well I’m going to run down and visit Abel quickly before I go back to run some more language analyses, then,” Ethos said brightly. “I’ll bring him up to speed, if you like, Helios. It was nice talking to you!”

“Oh, sure, you’ll probably explain it better than I could, anyway, Ethos!” I smiled and waved goodbye to the shorter man as he left. Turning back to Praxis, who didn’t seem to be following after his navigator, I wondered what to say. He stood there, looking like he might be thinking the same thing.

“So… do you know Abel well? You seem pretty upset that he got hurt,” I broke the awkward silence. Though maybe with the wrong question, judging from the way the taller fighter directed his lopsided gaze at the ground between his feet. “I mean– ummm, obviously it’s awful that anyone got hurt. But the MO seemed to think it was nothing too serious…” I trailed off.

Praxis’ mouth set, and he made eye contact with me again, seemingly having decided on what he wanted to say. “I mean, I guess I don’t know him _that_ well. Him and Ethos are friends, though… and I– I owe him my life.”

I could feel the surprised expression cross my face and made an effort to bring my eyebrows down from my hairline. “Oh,” was all I got out.

Praxis mumbled through a hasty explanation of the battle in which he’d lost his eye and his previous navigator. How Abel had risked his own ship, not to mention his and Cain’s lives, to bring the _Tiberius_ back safely. The tense set to his shoulders and a telltale tightness in his voice made it obvious that the other fighter wasn’t completely sure why he was telling me this. My heart went out to him. I couldn’t imagine surviving Selene in a situation like that, and we’d only been paired for two weeks. The thought of having to learn to work with a new navigator after months or even years of being a team with someone was sobering.

I nodded through his monologue, made a sympathetic noise or two, then tried to inject a bit of levity to the conversation. “I take it Cain didn’t appreciate getting dragged into that?”

The older man barked out a harsh laugh. “To put it mildly,” he said in a sardonic tone. “Those two are pretty inseparable, and Mother help any other fighter who tries to be so much as friendly to Abel.” He sounded sad, and I wondered if he’d ever hoped to be more than just friends with the attractive navigator who’d saved him. Before I could think too much on it, Praxis stood up from where he’d been leaning on the railing. “I think I’ll head down and check in on him, then. Uh… I’ll see you later, I guess?”

“Yeah, sure thing,” I said, smiling. “Oh, and the MO told me we should all be drinking more water…to help with recovery, I guess? Not sure what it has to do with our eardrums, though.” I laughed a little nervously.

“Ummm, okay… thanks for the reminder, then,” Praxis nodded, heading off in the same direction Ethos had gone earlier, looking back over his shoulder at me after a few steps.

Startled from where my brain had decided to hang, I gave a little wave and headed quickly in the opposite direction, feeling my cheeks heat. _Why did I say that?_ I despaired at my apparent inability to be even remotely suave.

I paused to get my bearings, and figured I should check in with Selene one more time to make sure he didn’t need help with anything. _Then I’ll call it a day and head to the bunk before I make myself look stupid in front of anyone else_.


	3. Day 3

I’d been on the bridge, trying to brighten Selene’s spirits as he struggled to make sense of the data that had been gathered on the Derelict, when one of the hangar crew ran in looking a bit out of sorts. Apparently there was a situation brewing down there, and a navigator was required. Selene, obviously needing a break, volunteered immediately.

“Mind if I tag along?” I hastily stood and followed them out of the bustling room where a whole crowd of computer techs were ooh-ing and ahh-ing over Abel’s latest discoveries. _It’s not like I’ve got anything else to do right now,_ I thought. If shit was going to go down, I figured I should be there to do my job as a Fighter and protect my partner.

We arrived to see Cain making a fuss, yelling at the maintenance crew members and getting more agitated by the second.

“Whoa, what is this? I think I’m glad you came along, Helios,” Selene said under his breath as we approached the source of the commotion. He took charge of the situation immediately, but Cain was still tense and looked ready to lash out at any moment.

“OKAY, you need to calm down!” I put a firm hand on Cain’s arm, but he shrugged it off violently with a snarl. Eventually he did settle a bit as we watched Selene and the tech check out the problem with the _Reliant_. Of course, he couldn’t resist getting a dig in about how I should be paying attention to my own navigator instead of his. I tried to keep my head, but it was difficult. He was just so abrasive, and it wasn’t like I’d actually done anything to deserve his wrath. _Abel’s more interested in me than I am in him!_ was all I could think, reflecting on the strangely flirty way he’d been talking to me since I visited him in med bay. It seemed unprovoked, considering he’d just been friendly in a collegial way during our interactions during my first two weeks on the ship. I knew better than to voice my concerns aloud, though. _If I ever want to get along with Cain, that is not the way to go about it_ , was all I could think.

Luckily Selene finished up, climbed back down to the hangar floor, and started to explain what he’d found. It seemed that all the away ships from the mission the other day had been tampered with, and were permanently grounded. Someone, probably a navigator, had sabotaged them. I could tell Selene was more worried than he let on as he gave Cain and I instructions about how to disconnect the auxiliary drives before heading off to file a report on the problem.

“Well, I’ve got mine handled here, thanks. Why don’t you go deal with that idiot?” Cain said, pointing across the hangar to where Praxis had arrived and was currently arguing with some of the maintenance crew members over by the _Tiberius_.

“H-huh? Oh for the love of… PRAXIS! STOP! The ships are all messed up! We’re not supposed to touch ‘em!” I called out, walking quickly over to join him and the disgruntled workers from the hangar crew.

“What on earth are you babbling about?” Praxis snapped, obviously in a touchy mood which wasn’t being helped by the crew insulting him.

“If you meatheads would just listen to us!” said a technician, exasperated.

“The ships are… there’s something wrong with–” I started.

“THEY’VE BEEN SABOTAGED” Cain yelled over the squabbling, before turning back to grumble at the underside of his own ship.

Praxis glared at the combative fighter across the hangar, then turned back to face me. “I…see… Well! What can I do to help, then?”

I smiled brightly, glad to see him more cooperative now that there was a task requiring his attention. “Here, open this panel for me, will you?” I asked, and he obliged, the last traces of annoyance dissipating from his features as focus set in. “We need to disconnect the auxiliary drives of all the ships from the Derelict mission. We also can’t let anyone get in them or touch anything else on them until further notice.”

“Why not? What’s going on?” he asked, curiously, as we worked side by side on the _Tiberius_.

“Promise not to talk about this to anyone else?” I asked after a brief pause, debating whether to bring him in on what was happening. He nodded, so I continued. “Okay. Have you noticed anything weird since we returned from the mission two days ago? Because Selene’s pretty sure that someone or something is sabotaging the ship.”

His single dark eye meet my two pale ones, full of concern. “What– Why would anyone…” he trailed off, brows drawn together as he detached a cable.

“If all of our Starfighters are out of commission, that’s a big deal, right?” I said, worry seeping into my voice despite my attempts not to let worry overwhelm me.

“Yeah… the _Kepler_ isn’t exactly a battleship,” he replied, slowly. “On an exploratory vessel like this, they’re our main line of defense.”

“Exactly. So if someone wanted us vulnerable to attack–”

“–This is exactly the sort of tactic you might expect,” he finished my sentence. “Shit.”

“Yeah, you’ve got that right,” I said, disconnecting the final cable and closing up the panel again. I glanced around the hangar quickly, and satisfied that there was nobody within earshot, I took another step into the taller fighter’s personal space underneath the wing and dropped my voice. “Selene said that based on the sabotage he’s seen, it has to be a navigator—or at least someone who has the knowledge of one. Will you help me keep an eye out for anyone acting unusual?”

I was standing so close that I could hear his breathing over the background noise of the open, echoing hangar. After a short pause he answered, “Yeah, umm, of course I will.”

I smiled up at him, and watched as the corners of his mouth quirked upwards in response. Shadows from the massive metal fuselage cast his expression into sharp relief, emphasizing the strong lines of his face. “Great! I’m glad there’s at least one other person I can trust besides my navigator,” I looked down shyly, realizing just how close our faces had ended up, “I’ve just been kind of uneasy since–”

“HEY!” Cain barked as he walked past the ship, startling the two of us. We jumped apart a little, and Praxis whacked his head off the curved metal panel next to us on his blind side. “Mine’s done. If either of you losers touch it, we’re gonna have a problem. Got it?” He didn’t even wait for a reply, just strutted off without another word. _How predictably unhelpful._

“Ugh. I guess that means it’s just us left to tackle the rest of the ships,” I whined a little, spinning to face the taller fighter, who was now rubbing a hand tenderly over the side of his head. “Oh! Is your head okay?” I shuffled over to his side to get a better look. I didn’t see any blood, but he stiffened and stood up to his full height, dropping his hand.

“Umm, it’s fine. No big deal,” he mumbled, pointedly avoiding looking at the offending panel or at me; obviously not wanting to draw any more attention to his clumsy moment.

“Oh… good!” I said, hands fidgeting a little, “Uh, you don’t need to stay if you have something else to do.”

He met my gaze again, only a hint of a flush letting on that he’d been embarrassed just seconds before. “No! No, I’m not doing anything important right now. It’ll go faster with two people working on it… seeing as Cain is being as uncooperative as always,” He scoffed.

“Okay, great… uh, let’s get on it, then!” I said, wandering towards the nearest ship before the awkward moment could stretch any longer.

We got the next Starfighter opened up and set to work. As usual, I couldn’t let the silence sit for long before opening my big mouth. “So Cain really doesn’t like you, huh?” I asked, then backpedaled, “I mean, he seems to rub the wrong way against just about everyone other than Deimos, but, uh…”

Praxis let out a humourless laugh. “No, it’s okay. He does hate me rather more than most.” He pulled at a cable with more force than necessary, then gripped the sides of the open maintenance hatch, knuckles white. I continued working, wondering if the other fighter would elaborate, and eventually he spoke again. “Remember how I told you about Abel saving my life?”

I gave a nod, but kept my attention on the auxiliary drive, not wanting to break the moment of candidness.

“Well… I may have been… inappropriately interested in him for a while after that–” he paused again. “I guess it was some weird mixture of gratitude, and concern for his well-being, paired with a fighter like Cain. He was fresh out of the Academy, on his first assignment… and I’d been around Cain long enough to know how awful he was to his previous navigators.”

_Oh god, why did I ask about this?_ I thought to myself, worried the palpable discomfort in the air would remain for the other half dozen ships we still had to get through. “So you have feelings for him?” I asked, keeping my tone carefully neutral.

“Oh– uh, not any more,” he hastily replied. “I figured out pretty quickly it wasn’t going to go anywhere, and I was still, um… recovering from everything. I guess I just worry about Cain treating him badly.”

I tried to keep my face straight, humming noncommittally even as I felt a strange sense of relief flood through me, then disconnected the final cable. “Okay, another one down!”

We moved onto the _Edifice_ , which was the next ship over. I rand my hand along the side of the fuselage and frowned. _Sorry beautiful, but you’re grounded for now_ , I thought with not a small amount of disappointment. This time, Praxis broke the silence between us as we worked, asking why I’d joined the Alliance. My answer was pretty basic, nothing the average colonist wouldn’t have said. But when I looked up into his kind stare, I could tell that he knew I was holding something back.

“Ummm, I guess my older sister enlisting also played a big part–” I paused, collecting my thoughts.

“Yeah?” He perked up at the mention of a family connection.

“Yeah. She raised me, and uh, really suited the role of Fighter perfectly. Her letters once she was on active duty were pretty interesting,” I smiled in spite of myself, “I guess she kind of inspired me to want to leave Mars.” I hurriedly slammed the panel shut, having finished up with my ship. “Let’s keep going!” I said, a little more tersely than I needed to.

We made good progress on the ships, and I was relieved that Praxis didn’t bring up Valentina again. We chatted about safer topics for a while. He told me more about the Alliance crew on the _Kepler_ , and how most of them had been assigned to the _Sleipnir_ together previously. The better part of the afternoon passed quickly, and we managed to mostly avoid awkwardness, with the work to focus on during lulls in conversation.

 “Hey, thanks for talking with me, Helios,” Praxis said as we opened up the panel covering the final ship’s auxiliary drive. “I... don't get along super well with a lot of the other fighters. I'm not really into brawling or gambling like most of them,” he admitted.

“Yeah, me neither. Fighting is something I generally only do when I have to. I’m decent at it, I guess. I’ve had plenty of reasons to fight, over the years… but I don’t go looking to pick a fight if I don’t need to,” I looked up to find him watching me, and decided some humour wouldn’t hurt. “Besides, it hardly seems worth messing up this beautiful face for a bottle of awful contraband or a pack of smokes,” I finished, batting my eyelashes over-dramatically.

The taller fighter let out a big laugh, and shook his head before replying. “Still, it's nice to meet someone else who is a little more friendly.”

“What about Athos?” I asked, quirking my head. They’d been sitting together at the briefing not two days ago. “Or, ummm,” I tried to think about who else I’d spotted Praxis talking with. “–Encke?”

“Oh, yeah…” he shrugged, looking down at the cables again, moving onto the next one. “They’re both nice, though Athos gossips a little much for my taste… and Encke really does have to hold himself apart from the rest of us because of his rank as Lead Fighter.”

I hummed, returning to the work at hand, not expecting him to continue. I was a little surprised when he added: “I guess it just gets a little lonely out here, especially if you aren't close with your navigator.” The larger man looked down at his boots sadly.

_It must have been so hard to lose a partner and suffer through recovery alone_ , I thought, remembering our talk on the observation deck and wishing there was something I could say. Not finding anything that felt right, I chose to stay silent, the pregnant pause stretching between us until we’d finished with the final ship and closed up the panel again.

“Well, hopefully that is everything Selene needed us to do!” I said, voice sounding too loud in the quiet between us. “Thanks for helping out.”

“Yeah, no problem. Good thing your navigator caught this. He’s really something else!” Praxis said, too cheerfully, face tight and pleasant expression seeming almost pasted on.

“Uh, yeah, he sure is.” It was all I could think to reply with. “Anyway, see you later?”

He shifted from one foot to the other before saying “Yeah, okay. Uh… bye,”  and turning to head out of the hangar.

I stood there for a moment, trying to decide what to do with myself. Eventually my stomach made the decision for me; grumbling sending me in the direction of the mess deck. _Maybe I can watch some of the navigators while I’m there_ , I thought to myself.

 

***

 

Even a good workout wasn’t enough to shake the ominous feeling that had been hanging over me all day. I was also in a bit of a rotten mood after all the drama at lunch between Abel and Selene. I felt like I’d screwed up, even though I hadn’t been trying to do anything. I’d hoped some physical exertion would clear my head. No such luck. _Ugh, I hope Selene isn’t mad at me tonight. The last thing we need right now is to start fighting while the ship is potentially under attack from within._

I was walking quickly through the halls towards the elevator, lost in my own thoughts, when I nearly ran into someone. Looking up, I saw the lopsided gaze of an eye-patched fighter staring down at me.

“Oh, hello Helios. And how are you this fine evening?”

“Uh, fine.” I wasn’t really in the mood to talk, even though I had enjoyed Praxis’ company earlier. I could tell that the taller fighter was grasping for some way to make conversation with me, though, and I tried to push aside the other stuff in my head. 

“Selene was quite impressive in the hangar. Your navigator really knows his chops,” he blurted.

“Umm, that’s an interesting way to put it—”

He looked flustered over his strange turn of phrase, his eye darting to the floor briefly before he tried to clarify. “I mean, he’s got impressive chops...”

I couldn't resist teasing him a little more, my mood lifting. _He’s so cute when he's awkward._

“Oh, are you sweet on my navi?”

My joshing didn't have the intended effect—his jaw clenched, brows drawing together as he tensed, straightening up to his full height and looking ready for a confrontation. As if I were Cain, perhaps. Either my playful tone finally registered, or the confusion likely plastered across my face did, because his shoulders slumped again and all the fight went out of him.

“Um, I just meant... Ethos mentioned he likes working with Selene. He seemed pretty awed by him,” Praxis offered weakly.

“Ha, yeah, Selene's pretty smart,” I clapped him on the shoulder, “But stop worrying. I’m not some possessive psycho like a few of the fighters I can think of.” Distracted by his strong shoulder muscles shifting under my hand, I left it lingering there longer than was probably expected. He relaxed a little more, leaning almost imperceptibly into my touch.

“Ugh. Glad to hear it. Sometimes I think every fighter on the ship is treating their navigator like a piece of meat.” Relief was obvious in his eye as he met my gaze again, then looked down, embarrassed. “Not that if you were, um, _involved_ with each other, that it’s a bad thing. I didn’t mean to imply–”

“Ha, no, we’re partners, but we’re not _partnering up_ ,” I responded, finally thinking to take my hand back.

“Ah... you two seem… compatible, though.”

I smiled and nodded. “Yeah, I guess so. We’ve been working well together in VR training. And he kept his head on that derelict ship, even with all the chaos. I feel pretty lucky to have gotten a good match…” My bad mood continued to dissipate, and I was feeling a lot better about going back to the bunk. Surely Selene would accept my apology and we could get past this weird, unfounded jealousy thing he had with Abel. “Umm, how do you like working with Ethos?” I knew it was the wrong thing to say as soon as it left my mouth. The older fighter’s face twisted up and he looked away.

“Uh, I didn’t realize the time. We should probably get back to work,” He stated in a flat voice.

“Oh, yeah, I guess.” I didn’t know what to say, really.

“Well, don’t let me keep you...” Praxis looked down and to the side, avoiding my gaze.

_Shit, how can I salvage this?_ I thought, not wanting to part with the other fighter on a negative note. “Well, feel free to keep me some other time! It was nice talking with you today.”

Mild surprise swept over his features, followed by an actual smile. “Yeah, you too. Have a good night.”

“See ya!”

I made my way down the hall towards the elevator, head spinning a little and not sure exactly what to make of the day I’d just had.


	4. Day 4

I awoke from a restless sleep to hear Selene saying my name. He was shaking my shoulder a bit as I blinked my eyes open and looked up blearily into his face. _Ugh, what awful dreams_ , I was still half asleep, distracted by a halo of illumination from the overhead lights shining through Selene’s loose hair, making the pale ends seem even brighter than usual.

“Wuzzuh—? What’s going on?” I asked groggily. 

“Get up, get up! The ship’s engines are down!” Selene said urgently, “Hangar’s requesting my aid.”

“Let me get dressed and come with you!”

Instantly more alert, I jumped out of bed and pulled my uniform pants on as quickly as possible, changing my sleep tank for a black regulation one and grabbing my jacket as my navigator hit the panel to open the door. The lights went out as we headed down the hall, emergency illumination strips glowing to allow us uninterrupted travel through the ship. Luckily the elevator was also connected to backup generators, so we were able to get to our destination without clambering along maintenance tunnels and ladders. I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes on the lift ride, and was mostly awake by the time we reached the hangar level.

“I’m here, how can I help?” Selene called out—voice all seriousness with an undercurrent of worry—striding to the door that opened into the engine room.

To my surprise, Praxis was the first one to poke his head out and welcome Selene. “Over here…”

I stood around, watching the two of them hunched over the engine’s control panel, looking up at the status display every few moments as Selene’s fingers flew over the panel, entering commands. _Hmmm, Praxis is standing awfully close to Selene_ , I mused sleepily. I wondered if my earlier guess that he might be interested in my navigator had any weight to it. I felt a flare of jealousy in my gut, but wasn’t really sure _who_ exactly I was jealous of, or over. I shook my head and decided to table the confusing thoughts for later.

“Selene?” I started to ask, wondering if I was just in the way.

“Hang on, I’ve almost got this–” It didn’t take long before the lights flickered back on and the engines hummed to life again. “Ha ha!” he laughed giddily.

“You genius!” I exclaimed, clapping my navigator on the shoulder. He smiled and brushed off the compliments from myself and Praxis.

Despite the triumph of the moment, unease gnawed at my insides as Selene launched into an explanation of what he thought was going on. Apparently him and Ethos had been working the problem from two different angles; Selene had been aware of the sabotage, and Ethos has discovered a takeover script in the logs he was deciphering from the Derelict. The two of them had connected the dots and figured out that it had to be a person doing the sabotage, not simply a virus.

“Helios, are you okay?” Selene had paused in his monologue, which I’d briefly lost track of as I got more and more worked up.

“Oh god, everything is happening exactly like it did in my sister’s last transmission,” I choked out, breathing shallow.

“What do you mean?” Selene asked, trying to be gentle, but intensity still ringing through every word.

“I… I’ve told you about my sister, right?. She was aboard the _Gautama Siddha_ when they found an abandoned Colteron ship, empty, no escape pods jettisoned,” I paused to let out a shuddering breath. “Ever since seeing the Derelict…” I trailed off, anxiety spiralling.

“Oh!” Praxis jumped in, “Yeah, I heard about that. Didn’t that ship go MIA a few months ago?” He quickly snapped his mouth shut when he met my gaze with his. I couldn’t put a good face on it for the moment.

Selene saved us from mutual awkwardness in the tense silence that ensued, reassuring me that he and Ethos had a handle on it. “Now we just need to figure out who is responsible. I’m certain it has to be a navigator. You two haven’t noticed anyone acting out of the ordinary since the mission, have you?”

Praxis cleared his throat and spoke again. “Umm. Actually… uh… Abel was acting pretty different the other day–”

“Different how?” Selene interrupted, latching onto the new information like a predator with the scent of blood.

“Uhhhh, he… he tried to come onto me…” Praxis mumbled, cheeks pinking. “It wasn’t like him. I thought maybe he was just out of sorts after being knocked out on the Derelict, but…” he trailed off, not making eye contact with Selene or me.

The older fighter’s words lifted a bit of clarity from the muddled mess that was my brain. “Oh, you’re right, he was being kind of flirty recently,” I added, “I’ve been getting a weird vibe from him the past day or two… but I chalked it up to the same thing, and was just worried he was pushing too hard after being released from med bay.”

I could practically hear the neurons firing in Selene’s head as he formulated a plan. “Okay, I’m going to need help from both of you on this. I think we’re running out of time, and I can’t be everywhere at once.” We both nodded and he continued. “I have to go back to med bay, actually, to get some data from the MO. Praxis, can you go up to the bridge? Ethos should be there right now. Fill him in and check for any navigator absences while you’re there, just in case. Helios, can you ask around the rest of the ship and figure out if anybody has seen Abel?”

With an affirmative from both of us fighters, Selene said, “Great. Let’s meet back here in an hour, tops,” and with that he dashed off, datapad in hand.

I was still breathing fast, trying to get my emotions in check, when I felt a large, warm hand settle between my shoulder blades. “Don’t worry, Helios,” Praxis said calmly, looking into my face, concern in his eye. “With both our navigators on the case, I’d say our chances are pretty good.”

I exhaled one last deep breath and directed a shaky smile up at him. “Yeah. Yeah, you’re right. Let’s go.” The taller fighter withdrew his hand—which sent a pang of disappointment through me—and nodded before turning to head out the other exit of the hangar.

 

***

 

I rushed up the stairs to the observation deck, heart pounding in my chest. I hadn’t seen Cain anywhere, which was my first thought for finding his navigator. Luckily, on the mess deck I’d overheard Phobos bitching about Abel’s ‘stupid’ new leather jacket and how ‘pale and sickly’ it made him look when he’d passed him on the level directly below the one I was on now. When I reached the metal gangway, I spotted a slender figure staring out the observation window, pale head of hair contrasting sharply with a black leather jacket.

_Not the civvies I would have expected from him_ , I thought curiously before reminding myself to focus. It was, of course, Abel standing at the railing, back to me. He turned as I approached, and gave a friendly smile as if nothing were the matter. _Well, it’s now or never_ , I thought, psyching myself up to confront him.

 

***

 

Throbbing pain in my head. _Ugh, how much did I drink? I don’t even remember going out_ , I thought, somewhat incoherently. The other symptoms of a hangover didn’t make themselves known, though, and as consciousness fought its way in, I realized I wasn’t sprawled in a bed or even on a floor. My eyes fluttered open enough for the dim light to make the ache in my head worse, and I groaned softly. I kept them shut while my senses returned, sluggishly.

I was warm, one side pressed up against a firm yet giving surface. I could feel the distinct up-and-down movement of breath entering and exiting a body. A deep voice spoke close to my ear: “Oh thank goodness you’re okay. Helios, I need you to wake up now. Please!”

“Wh... uhh?”

I let my eyes crack open again, slowly taking in my surroundings. It hurt my head less this time—my head that was currently resting against Praxis’ shoulder. He had me pulled into his lap, sitting on the floor up against the railing of the observation deck. One of his arms looped behind my back, my side resting heavily against his broad chest. _This is nice_ , my still-dopey brain thought, before the realization of why I was on the floor could fully penetrate the haze. I looked up into the face of the other fighter, worry lines creasing his brow, and suddenly remembered everything.

“Praxis! We have to catch Abel!” I said, hurriedly trying to sit up and nearly toppling over. The hand at my back braced me in an upright position until the thumping in my head abated a little. “I found him here, but I guess he’s stronger than he looks–”

“Yeah, things have gotten a little crazy. Life support is down, and you missed the excitement on the bridge,” he said, helping me to kneel beside him so he could stand up and assist me in getting on my feet again. “A bunch of the computer technicians were brainwashed or something. They attacked after Ethos warned us not to look at the screens. Encke and I had to subdue them with the help of the unaffected navigators. The whole place is on lockdown now.”

I put a hand to my head and held onto the railing until the dizziness of being upright again passed. “So Abel wasn’t on the bridge?” I asked, confusion starting to dissipate but struggling to make all the connections.

“Uh, no,” replied the other fighter, somewhat distractedly. We were both thinking hard.

“Where else would he be able to access all the computer systems for the _Kepler_?” I asked.

“There are auxiliary controls in the hangar, I guess?”

My heart caught in my throat. “We have to find Selene!” I said, starting towards the exit, only swaying a little on the first few steps. Praxis stuck close by my side, arms held at the ready, obviously worried I’d go down again. “If Abel’s headed for the engine room and those controls, he could be in trouble.”

By the time we reached the hangar, the ache in my head had become dull and easily ignored thanks to the adrenaline rushing through my body. Looking through the doorway into the main area, it was quiet. Too quiet. Where were the maintenance crew?

I shifted my gaze over towards the entrance to the engine room at the same time as I felt Praxis place one large hand over my mouth. It was a good thing, too, as I might have shouted something otherwise. I jumped as he whispered in my ear.

“Shhhh! Don’t let him know we’re here,” the larger fighter said, breath ghosting over the side of my face. Both of us were looking at two small figures across the hangar, one being restrained by the other. Abel had his arm around Selene’s throat.

My fighter’s survival instincts were kicking in, but I kept them in check as I watched Praxis sneak over to approach from out of Abel’s line of sight. Once he’d taken cover behind one of the maintenance trolleys and flashed me a hand signal, I entered the hangar at a run, closing the distance between myself and the two navigators quickly.

“Selene! Get away from him or I’ll–” I yelled, stopping a few metres from where the pale-haired man had my navigator in a headlock. Selene was struggling to no avail. I noticed his datapad on the ground between us.

“TRY ME!” Abel sounded half-crazed. I didn’t like the glint in his eye.

“Helios– the datapad!” Selene got out in a strangled voice.

“Make a wrong move and I’ll snap his slender little neck,” Abel spat.

I could see Praxis’ approach in my peripheral vision, but kept my eyes locked on Abel’s so as not to alert him. “Hey, fuck you, Abel!” I swore.

At that moment, Praxis grabbed both of Abel’s arms from behind, using his size and strength to full advantage, restraining the smaller man. Selene fell to his knees coughing, but pointing weakly at the datapad.

“Praaaaxis,” Abel purred, venom dripping from the seductive tone of his voice, “I know you don’t want to do this.”

“Abel– You’re not in your right mind–” Praxis got out, struggling a bit as the navigator tried to turn around in his arms.

“Let me go, Praxis,” Abel continued, “I’ll make it worth your while.” The slender navigator tipped his head back towards the fighter, lashes lowered, tongue flicking out along his upper lip. 

Not wasting any more time, I dashed over to pick up the datapad. Luckily it seemed to be intact and functioning.

“Helios– at his face!” Selene managed between coughs, gesturing between the device I held and his assailant.

I stepped towards the struggling navigator, who became more frantic as I held the screen up to him.

“I _know_ you want me, Praxis,” Abel said forcefully. “Help me and we can be together.”

“Hit the button!” Selene croaked desperately.

“Sorry Abel,” Praxis wrapped one of his arms further around Abel, grabbing his chin to keep him facing toward me, “But I’m not interested.” The fighter turned his head to the side so his good eye was facing away, shielded by the side with the patch.

I didn’t waste any more time, holding the datapad right up to Abel’s face and activating it. A bright flash came from the device, and Abel slumped in Praxis’ arms, finally out cold. _We did it!_

I helped Selene up off the hangar floor, and over to the control panels, where he overrode the system shutdowns. Once we knew the ship was safe, he explained all the pieces of the puzzle we’d been missing.

“You did amazing!” I clapped my partner on the back, and Praxis seconded the praise.

Selene blushed and responded, “Well, so did Ethos, discovering that takeover script,” to which I actually saw Praxis smile, “and without you two, I’d be as good as out an airlock… We’d better take Abel to med bay and report in to the CO,” he finished, staring sympathetically at the unconscious navigator.

“Will he be… okay?” I asked.

“I’m, uh, 98% sure he will,” Selene said, brows scrunching together in thought, “I emulated the flash that knocked him out on the Derelict, and I replaced the data that was compelling him to sabotage the ship with something approximating his normal neural oscillations. I used his CT scans on record from before the mission… his brainwave patterns should be back to normal now, though the induced seizure might have some small effect. Best to let the medical team take over from here.”

Praxis and I took Abel straight to the Medical Officer on duty, who had us lay him out on a bed next to Cain. Apparently the other half of the _Reliant_ team had taken an even worse knock to the head than I had, but he was awake and recovering now. Deimos sat next to his bedside, silent as always. _I wonder how he dragged Cain back here?_

The obvious concern in Cain’s eyes while staring at Abel’s supine form—so pale under the harsh lights and all-white surroundings of the medical facilities—made me feel sorry for him. When he actually thanked Praxis and I under his breath, both of us must have looked so surprised—I saw the other fighter’s brows climb toward his hairline almost comically. Cain bristled immediately afterward, telling us to “Stop gawking and get lost!” in an affected ‘tough’ voice.

We didn’t wait around to end up in a fight. Deimos was staring daggers at us, and I wouldn’t want to bet on who had the advantage at that moment.

 

***

 

Having checked in on the bridge with our navigators and the CO, Praxis and I got sent away again pretty quickly, really just being in the way. The whole level was bustling with computer techs pulled off their rest hours early to take over for the ones still recovering. It might be a day or two before things could settle down enough for full debriefs and decisions about what would happen, if anything, to Abel and other victims of the Angler brainwashing. Satisfied that our navigators didn’t need anything else as they worked to deal with the aftermath of the sabotage, the two of us left and headed to the elevator together.

We ended up on the bunk level, and Praxis stopped in front of what I assumed was his and Ethos' room. He didn't move to open the door right away, and looked like he might be trying to figure out something to say.

“Thanks for all your help with–” “Would you like to come in and–”

We both opened our mouths at the same time and talked over each other, then promptly shut up. I smiled and laughed a little as he fumbled with the panel, the door sliding open. He gestured, and following him in I saw the room was laid out pretty much exactly the same as the one Selene and I shared. Different personal effects were neatly placed around the space, of course, but it was fairly spartan on the whole.

“Welcome to my humble abode,” Praxis began, “Ethos has the top bunk and I've got the bottom. Make yourself comfortable, if you like.”

Taking him at his word, I yanked off my boots, leaving them by the door, which had slid shut again, and sat on one side of the bottom bunk. Instead of joining me, though, Praxis remained standing just off to the side of the desk. His eye was roaming the small space, coming back to me on his bed multiple times, but then veering away again without meeting my gaze. He looked like he wanted to fidget, but was too stoic to actually do it, his arms remaining stiff at his sides.

_I'd rather see another part of him stiff_ , my brain helpfully added, making me feel even more uncomfortable in the continued silence.

“I'd offer you a drink, but I haven't got any contraband at the moment,” he finally said, apologetically.

“You know, as much as I feel we could use one after today, I'm pretty sure if I did drink, I'd pass out from exhaustion,” I looked up at him, “and then you'd be stuck with me in your bunk.”

He kept a neutral expression, but I caught the start of a flush creeping up from the collar of his flight suit. I decided to push my luck.

“Although, if you'd like that...” I trailed off suggestively and his eyebrows shot up, the flush deepening a shade or two. _Success_. I let my gaze travel lazily down his long, well-built frame, then raked it back up—admiring every muscle on the way. _He really does fill out a skin-tight suit like nobody's business_ , I thought appreciatively as I met his lopsided stare again.

He dropped his eye to the floor, but not before I'd had a chance to register the heat behind it, answering my own. _Well if he's going to be a blushing bride, I guess it's on me_. I grabbed onto the lip of the top bunk and hoisted myself back up to standing, crossing the short distance between us with measured steps.

“Isn't that why you invited me in?”

“Oh. I... Umm–”

_He's so cute when he's flustered_ , I couldn’t help thinking. “Or am I not your type?” I asked playfully, leaning even closer.

He looked a bit startled. “No! I mean, uh, you're great, Helios–” he started, in the most painfully earnest voice.

I decided to put him out of his misery and slowly leaned all the way into his personal space, tipping my head up to offer him my slightly parted lips. I was both a little surprised and thrilled by his immediate, enthusiastic response. In one sharp motion, he tilted his chin down and made to close the distance between our faces. Our noses bumped and he froze. _Okay, slightly less thrilling_.

“Oh god, sorry. I–”

I just huffed out a soft laugh and altered the angle of my approach. Unfortunately, it was just as he turned his head to the side, embarrassed, so all I got was a mouthful of the side of his face.

“Sorry! Sorry, I– my depth perception sometimes...”

I brought one of my hands to rest on his side, and raised the other one to his cheek, to turn him back toward me. “Praxis. Stop trying to apologize, and kiss me,” I said, only slightly exasperated, guiding our lips together when he didn't resist. _Third time's the charm_.

His lips were softer than I'd expected, pliant under mine. He kissed back, gently, letting our mouths linger against each other after each kiss. Eventually he remembered his arms and tentatively wrapped one around my waist, resting his hand lightly in the small of my back, letting the other cup my shoulder blade. I could feel the strength corded along them, even though he wasn't using any of it, yet. I moaned and trailed the tip of my tongue along the inside of his parted lips. The reaction was sudden and intoxicating. Praxis deepened the kiss, letting his tongue slide alongside mine and reeling me in the rest of the way, closing the last of the space between our bodies.

_Bless whoever designed our flight suits_ , I thought, feeling the hard lines of him pressed against me. Including one that was rapidly getting harder. The uniform I was wearing, despite its reasonably close fit, felt bulky in comparison—too much fabric separating me from the tall, muscular fighter who was currently claiming my mouth with enthusiasm. Apparently he agreed, because the hand on my shoulder moved to start pulling back my open jacket.

He paused, separating our lips for a moment, breathing faster than before. “Is this okay?”

I gave an energetic nod, “Better than okay,” shrugging the garment off. Praxis caught it before it could end up on the floor, hanging it over the bunk ladder without looking as we snapped back together. _Fuck he's a good kisser_. I moaned into his mouth again, louder this time, as I pulled his hips back against mine and felt our erections press up alongside each other. He let out a shaky groan and ran his hands all over my back as I ground against him slowly, our mouths meeting for another, slightly sloppier kiss.

He broke the kiss almost reluctantly, and pulled back enough to look at me, one hand coming up to sit along the back of my neck. “Umm, it’s been a while since I–” he cut himself off briefly, “…since this, actually,” he tilted his head, indicating the patch over his left eye.

_How has someone this hot not gotten laid in however long it’s been?_ I wondered to myself, but all I said was: “Oh. Did you want to take this slower?”

I gave him a little smile, reluctantly let go of where my hands were gripping the fabric of his suit, and started to back up a bit. He surprised me by pulling my body close again and dropping his forehead to mine, resting it there. “God no,” he let out a sigh tinged with frustration. “I just… might be a little rusty.”

“Could have fooled me,” I flirted, bringing my hands back to his hips and gently guiding him back to sit down on the bottom bunk, legs over the edge and feet still on the ground. I lowered myself to the bed as well, straddling his hips, wrapping my arms around his neck. He looked at me, practically smouldering, and we resumed kissing.

I undid the clasp at the collar of his flight suit while I mouthed along his jaw line, sucking gently just below the ear. Dragging the zipper down by a few inches I pulled the material to either side, exposing more of the long, strong neck and chest beneath. I lavished attention down it as I went; kissing his collar bones and dipping my tongue into the hollow between them. “Mmm, Helios,” he said, humming into my skin a little as he returned the gesture in kind, pushing me back a bit and ducking his head under my chin. _Wow, he’s so strong_ , I marvelled as I leaned into the arm sprawling up the length of my back, while he tugged the neckline of my tank top to the side using his free one.

His hair tickled at my neck and I ran my hands up into it. The thick, silky locks slid easily through my fingers as I mussed them up. _I bet he has amazing sex hair_. Distracted by his tongue laving over my clavicle, I moaned and grasped at the strands beneath my fingers, using my hold to gently guide his mouth back up to mine as I rolled my hips in his lap. The motion evoked a deep groan from the larger man, which I greedily lapped up where our lips met. Using my tongue to chart the inside of his mouth more thoroughly, I continued playing with his hair. Praxis seemed to enjoy the touch; leaning his head back into it and sighing into our kisses as his own hands roamed my body, untucking my uniform shirt to get at skin.

My fingers kept coming up against the obstacle of a thick elastic cord, though. The string that held the older fighter's eyepatch in place got in the way of really being able to drag my hands all the way through his hair. With an effort of will, I separated my lips from his and pulled back enough to see his face as I brought my slender digits to rest on either side of his head, gently fingering the cord.

“Can I take this off?” I asked, voice rough with desire.

He immediately tensed below me, jaw clenching and hands stilling their motion over my sides. _Fuck, way to mess it up, Helios_ , I berated myself internally as Praxis visibly searched for an answer. I immediately withdrew, but knew the moment had already been shattered. His good eye looked down and to the side, as if the thin, military issue mattress had suddenly become fascinating.

“Uhh, I mean...” he started, but trailed off, brows drawn together.

“Shit, sorry, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable,” I stammered, trying to backtrack out of what I now realized was probably an emotional minefield. Hoping against hope that I could navigate to safer ground again without the whole thing blowing up in my face. “You can leave it on, of course. It's fine! It's your call! Sorry for overstepping–”

His large, warm hand found one of my wrists, squeezing gently to quiet me. I snapped my mouth shut and waited for the fallout from my stupidity.

“Do you really want to?”, he asked, voice a little bitter sounding, overlaid with a quizzical tone and vulnerability writ large across his features. His one good eye was fixed on the two of mine again, lovely brown depths looking so sad; his gaze tugging at my heart.

My brain immediately cut off its incessant, too-late warning cry of ‘ _bail, bail, bail_ ’. It was clear as day—even to someone as oblivious as me—that backing down now would cut deeper than broaching the subject in the first place had. Forcing myself to be calm, even as I practically vibrated with anticipation, I brought my hands up to gently cup the sides of his face, running one thumb along the line of his strong jaw.

“Yeah,” I whispered, letting a soft smile play over my lips as I slowly returned my fingers to the cord holding the patch in place. His breaths were coming fast and sharp, but he held my gaze, stoic as ever. I watched his expression closely as I pulled the cord away from his head and carefully lifted the piece of dark material off his face, ready to stop if he changed his mind. But he didn’t flinch as I removed it, just held his breath as I took in the sight of his face in its entirety.

_Gorgeous_. I admired the view before me; the surprisingly clean, diagonal scar over the lid formed an almost gentle counterpoint to the intense, deep stare on the other side of his regal nose. It barely affected the overall shape of his face and there was still a beautiful sweep of dark lashes lying against his left cheek, almost as if in some enchanted, perpetual sleep.

“Hey there, handsome,” I murmured.

He let out the breath he’d been holding in a rush, and it was like pure oxygen hitting a spark. Where before Praxis had been slow, gentle—a smouldering ember—now he was all white hot passion surging up against me, completely overwhelming. Our mouths met nearly violently, him kissing me so I could barely breathe and didn’t care if I ever did again so long as I could keep doing this. It felt like he had more than two hands; with how they seemed to be everywhere on my body at once, pulling me into his. I couldn’t even say how or when he managed to get my shirt off over my head, so deliriously lost to the moment. I got my hands in between our chests and unzipped his flight suit as far down as I could get, running my fingers over the hard, flat planes of his muscular pecs and abdomen.

“Fuck you’re hot,” I said breathlessly, feeling my cock twitch in anticipation, straining against the fly of my uniform pants.

The larger fighter just pulled me against him again, the feel of skin on skin burning hot as he grabbed my ass. His strong hands kneading the muscle as he rolled his hips up, our erections grinding together, eliciting twin moans. I mouthed my way down the long, elegant column of his neck and worked one hand between us. Sliding it down his stomach, I could feel the muscles jolt beneath my touch. I grasped his length and pulled it free from where it had been trapped underneath the form-fitting fabric of his flight suit. Like the rest of him, his cock was sizeable—though not unreasonably so—and nicely shaped, lilting just slightly to the left.

_I’m so glad we didn’t all die before I got to do this,_ I thought, my mouth watering at the sight before me.

Praxis was panting a little already, running his hands up and down my thighs and looking up at me with naked desire in his stare. “Oh– please, Helios–”   
  
I stared right back at him and brought the flat of my palm to my mouth, licking a wide stripe up it, getting an almost whimpering noise from him as he watched intently. I took firm hold of the base of his cock and slowly stroked up the entire length of it as he groaned deeply. When I started back down, he bucked up to meet my hand, hard, and– _THUMP_.

My head knocked against the underside of the upper bunk. Startled by the pain, I gripped harder and he let out an almost comical combination of sounds; arousal mixed with garbled words of concern. I took my hand away to feel at the tender spot on my skull and the apologies started pouring out of him.

“Oh no, Helios, I’m _so_ sorry. Shit. Are you okay? I wasn’t paying enough attention, I’m really sorry. You aren’t hurt are–”

I leaned over and kissed him to shut him up. It worked, though he still had worry lines creasing his forehead.

“It’s okay, I had a bump forming there already, anyway,” I joked, which got a sheepish smile from the man underneath me.

With the heat of the moment partially quelled, I was thinking clearly enough to reposition us. Beginning with slow kisses again, I peeled the top of his suit off broad shoulders and down muscular arms, pausing briefly to appreciate the sight of his completely bare upper body. Pushing Praxis down to lay back on the bed, I slid up alongside him and insinuated one of my legs between his.

“You still good?” I asked, because he'd gotten quiet, and tentative with physical contact once again.

“Yeah, are you?” He reached out to cup the back of my neck with one of those huge mitts of his, and I sighed into the touch. His fingers massaged into the buzzed hair along the back of my head.

“So good,” I said, smiling playfully, “but I'd be even better if you touched me somewhere else.” I pushed my hips against his again, letting my desperation for him escape with the stuttering breath I exhaled at the stimulation.

A spark in his good eye, Praxis rolled onto his side and pulled me closer again, hand moving down to my waist.  He wasted no time getting my uniform pants undone and yanking them over the curve of my ass, as our tongues danced in and out of each other's mouths.

_Fuck. His hands are so big, this feels amazing_ , I thought, as he palmed my hardness through the military issue black underwear. I'd been leaking precum with excitement, enough to form a sizable wet patch over the front of the fabric. “Unnhh, yessssss,” I hissed as he gripped me, rocking against his hand. I whimpered a little pathetically when he stopped, but his fingers quickly found the waistband of my briefs and peeled them down over my hip bones, freeing my aching cock.

“Ah– yes, oh please yes, touch me!” I said all at once in response to his strong grip returning to where it had been seconds previous. He stroked slowly up and down my length, making my eyes roll back a bit. I reached out to do the same for him, even as I buried my face into the crook of his neck, sucking a mark there.

“Ffffff– unnnn...” He moaned somewhat incoherently. We got lost in each other's touch for long moments, the rhythm of our strokes slowly increasing in tempo until we were both panting the same air in between desperate kisses. At some point he had brought our hips together and taken us both in hand; wrapping around both of us with long, sturdy fingers. I was quickly losing myself to the sensation of our erections sliding against each other as he pumped them, precum mingling and slicking down both our shafts.

“Unnhh– Praxis, I want you to– ah!” was all I got out, placing my hand on his forearm to still its motion so I could be a bit more articulate. He slowed then paused, breathing heavily, single eye glazed over with lust as it dragged up my body to meet mine. “If you keep doing that, I'm not going to last much longer, and there's more I'd like to do with you.” I gently grabbed his wrist, bringing his hand to rest on my ass. His tongue darted out to lick his lips, and the sight of that alone nearly had me shooting off.

“You want me to…?” he started, fingers playing along the cleft between my buttocks. I moaned eagerly in response, bringing our lips together again. “Ah– fuuuuuck... Yes, okay.”

He brought his hands to his own hips and quickly shucked the flight suit the rest of the way off, then clambered over me. I admired the long lines of his body as he worked my clothing down my legs. He ran his hands up my thighs, applying delicious pressure so I could feel his strength pushing me into the mattress, and leaned over my supine form. His erection bobbed just above mine, and I tried to bring my hips up to meet it, but he held me in place with ease, hands circling my hips.

_Oh fuck_ , I thought, turned on beyond reason and letting out a whine. He made me feel so delicate with the effortless way he could reposition me. I wasn't used to feeling small, but found the novelty of it overwhelmingly hot. Perhaps especially because the man in front of me was looking down at me like I was a present he’d been waiting excitedly to open. “Mmmm! You’re so strong– ahhhh–”

“Let me just–” he said, shifting up to reach over my head and pull the drawer by the bed open, rummaging in it. His broad chest hovering over my face was too enticing. Pushing up on my elbows, I kissed across the well-muscled planes of it, gently licking at a nipple and getting a gasp from the larger fighter as reward. He eased back, smile playing across his handsome face.

Uncapping the lube, he got the fingers of one hand slicked while mouthing along my neck from shoulder to just behind the ear. Using his dry hand, he guided me to roll on my side and pressed his chest up against my back, one arm wrapped under and around me. The slick fingers of the other hand gently teased my entrance. “Is this okay?” he asked, an earnest tone to his voice even as it was thick with arousal.

“Mmmmm, yeah, ‘s good,” I replied, wrapping an arm behind my head to tangle in his hair and lightly pushing back against the pressure of his fingers. He began probing at me intently; slow, steady motions as he circled his fingertips, pressing into the ring of muscle. I relaxed into him, feeling so safe in his strong, gentle arms—tipping my head back onto his shoulder and panting as he eased one digit inside me. He let me get used to the sensation of it before slowly starting to pull back out, stroking into me with such patience. “Mmh! M- more... nnnhhh!”

Time felt like it was flowing funny. I couldn’t tell whether he spent five minutes or five hours carefully stretching me out; prepping me to take the thick cock that was jutting into my lower back, twitching every so often in response to my moans as he worked two fingers into me. I was almost completely lost to sensation as his fingertips just grazed over the right spot, sending sparks up my spine.

“Ahhh… Praxis, please– want you,” I murmured breathily, grinding my hips back onto his fingers. He slowly dragged them out of me, hooking them toward my pelvis for one last burst of white hot stimulation. I bit back a whine as he pulled away from behind me, and rolled over to look at him. A flush had spread over his chest and cheeks, swollen lips slightly parted, and hair sticking up on top where I’d been running my hands through it. Another drop of molten heat gathered low in my belly as he positioned himself between my spread legs and leaned in for a kiss.

“Do you– is on your back like this okay?” he asked, and I nodded enthusiastically, wrapping my arms up around his shoulders. “Shit, Helios, you have no idea how incredible you look right now.” He grabbed the lube again with slightly shaky hands and poured some, groaning as he touched his neglected arousal. He lined it up with my entrance and paused, looking into my eyes with that beautiful lopsided gaze, asking permission.

“P-please, Praxis… now!” I moaned, clutching at his shoulder blades, trying to pull him into me. He went along with it, and all that was left in my mind was the delicious stretch and press of him into my body. No matter how much I pulled at his back, trying to get more of him, he kept going in a slow, controlled, inexorable slide. Finally, after what seemed an eternity, he sank all the way in and I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding in one big whoosh. He dropped his forehead to my shoulder and I could feel the tension coiled along his body as he held in place, waiting for me to adjust to the substantially larger intrusion.

I started squirming, needing him to move, and turned my head to the side just as he turned his own, our noses colliding again, though with less force than before. I laughed and he moaned as the action caused me to clench around his length. I kissed him sloppily and wrapped my legs around his waist. Slowly, he began pulling partway out, then pumping back in, gradually working up a rhythm.

“Ahhhhhhh, yessssss,” I dug my feet into his muscular ass, trying to get him to pick up the pace. “Oh fuck, that feels so good.”

“Just… just like this for another minute,” he huffed against my neck, hands wrapping tighter around my body. I revelled in the feeling of being completed engulfed by him and filled up by him all at once, forgetting my impatience.

Eventually, he snapped his hips a little harder against me and I let out a sharp gasp. “Oh! Sorry, was that okay?”

“Yes! Don’t stop! Please… fuck me harder!”

He relented, picking up the pace, moving into me with more force than before. Running his tongue along my jaw, dropping kisses here and there as he thrust into me—it was divine, but I could still feel him holding back. All that potential energy trapped in his taut muscles practically vibrated, singing against my skin. He slowed for a moment to disentangle my legs, bringing the backs of my thighs up against his chest, leaning back a bit to change the angle before continuing at a moderate pace. Now the head of his cock was hitting just the right spot on each thrust, making me forget myself momentarily as nonsense noises escaped my throat.

“Your ass is so... unn... so tight. So good,” he managed, good eye closed to match the other now. He slowed for a few long, delicious thrusts, pulling almost all the way out before pushing home again.

The side of his face nuzzled against the bend of my knee, Praxis stared down at me as he rolled his hips. When I held his gaze for a few moments, so he knew I was paying attention, he spoke again. “Unn, Helios, you’re pretty much all I could think about the past few days,” he said around panting breaths. “Just kept imagining this– what it would be like to do this with you…” He dropped a gentle kiss to the inside of both my knees. “Fuck… you feel even more amazing than I dreamed. Ahhhh–” his rhythm faltered, and I could tell he was struggling to hold onto his control.

“Been– thinking about you– too,” I got out. “Don't, ahh, hold back. I want more… give me it all,” I dropped my legs back to either side of him and he leaned over me again, pressing our bodies together so my leaking cock was trapped between our stomachs. He wrapped his arms around me tightly—one snaking under my back, lifting my hips into his—and began driving into me with all the force behind those strong limbs. _Finally!_ I thought, before giving myself over to the ecstasy of getting fucked hard.

“Hnnnnnnngggghhhh…” I moaned loudly, nipping at the other fighter’s shoulder. Running my hands over his back, feeling all those beautiful muscles shifting under sweat-slicked skin. Every sensation so intense, like my perception was heightened in this moment, taking in everything. I could feel myself barreling towards climax, all the nerve endings in my body lighting up, pressure building. “Pra-Praxis!”

My cry found an answer in his wordless shout, his body shaking over mine as orgasm ripped through it. He kept thrusting into me hard as he finished, milking every last moment of pleasure. It was just enough for me to join him there, my release spreading hot and sticky between us as I panted against the neck of the larger man on top of me. Kissing him lazily when he raised his head, still sheathed in me but starting to come down again.

Raising himself on shaky arms, Praxis slowly eased out of me and collapsed onto the narrow mattress, pressed up along my side. I was temporarily too fucked stupid and boneless to move or do much of anything, really. I just turned my head so we could be face-to-face, breathing the same air as our heart rates slowed. The scarred half of the older fighter’s face was resting on the pillow so I could only just see it; his good eye was travelling slowly over my face. His fingers pushed strands of hair, slightly matted together with sweat, off my forehead before trailing down my cheek.

“…Wow,” he finally said in a deep, rough-edged voice.

I gave a little breathless laugh, “Yeah.” My limbs felt like they might listen to my brain again, so I shifted onto my side, curling an arm around his firm waist. He brought his lips to mine. Soft kisses and the feeling of his arms around me so nice in my blissed out state. We stayed like that for a few minutes, just enjoying the peace and comfort after a harrowing couple of days. Eventually I started to get a bit restless, the dried come on my stomach and down my thighs becoming bothersome.

“So, not wanting to be too forward,” I said, raising up on my elbows, “but if you want to do that again sometime, consider me enthusiastically in favour of the idea.” One side of my mouth pulled up into a smirk, and got a smile in return.

“Maybe next time with fewer head bumps and knocked noses?” he joked.

“Eh, I didn’t mind ‘em,” I said casually, swinging my legs over the side of the bed and stretching. I felt the warmth of his hand trail down the length of my back one last time as he sat up, too. It sent a pleasant shiver along my spine.

“We should probably check in with Selene and Ethos,” he said, standing up and following me into the small attached washroom. He handed me a washcloth from where a small stack of clean towels were hanging. “Make sure everything is still going okay, see if there’s anything we can do to help.”

I ran the water in the sink until it was warm, wetting the cloth. “Good plan. Maybe we can convince them to get some rest, too.”

We cleaned up and dressed efficiently, not bothering to make much conversation; it was comfortable, though, not tense or unpleasant. After we had our boots on again, Praxis pulled the sheets on his bunk into something approaching neatness and turned off the lights, opening the door and locking it again behind us.

He strode purposefully down the hall towards the elevator, and I couldn’t help hanging a few steps back, watching his ass. It somehow looked just as good in the tailored uniform pants as it had in the leaves-nothing-to-the-imagination material of the flight suit. My mind wandered a bit in post-coital bliss, _Does he always top?_ Like he could sense my thoughts, Praxis turned his head back to look at me, raised the brow over his good eye, and smiled a little as he pressed the “Up” button. As we waited, he turned to me and said: “The next few days, maybe weeks, are probably going to be tough.”

Reality was already pushing out the bliss of our stolen time. I could tell we were both a little heavy-hearted thinking about what would happen to Abel, and all the work that would need to be done to recover from the sabotage as the _Kepler_ made its way back to the station. “Yeah, you’re probably right.”

“If you or Selene need anything… want any help with whatever work comes up because of all this… just let me know?” he offered, a little awkwardly.

I turned to look up at him and smiled gratefully. “Of course I will. Same goes for you, okay? I’m here if you need anything.” The elevator beeped as it arrived on our level, the doors slid open and we stepped in.

Standing side by side in the lift, his fingers found mine and squeezed as we rode in companionable silence up to the bridge.  

 

END

**Author's Note:**

> I'm [goodyeartheshippycat](https://goodyeartheshippycat.tumblr.com/) on tumblr, if you want to chat or prompt me!


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